LEGACY PROGRAMME

RAiSE

RAiSE was a national primary science programme, supported by The Wood Foundation and partners, helping teachers across Scotland build the confidence, skills and networks to deliver motivating STEM learning.

Download legacy report

What was RAiSE?

RAiSE was created to strengthen primary science education in Scotland by supporting the people who bring it to life in classrooms: teachers.

The programme helped primary teachers build the confidence, skills and networks needed to deliver motivating STEM learning and create more opportunities for children to explore science from an early age.

For The Wood Foundation, RAiSE reflected a long-term commitment to developing young people in Scotland by investing in the systems, educators and learning experiences that shape their future.

How did it work?

RAiSE was facilitated through through Primary Science Development Officers, known as PSDOs, who were based within participating local authorities.

Each PSDO worked directly with schools and teachers, providing professional learning, practical support and local leadership for primary science.

This approach meant RAiSE could respond to the needs of each local area while connecting teachers, schools and authorities into a wider national network for STEM education.

IMPACT

RAiSE in numbers

RAiSE was built on the belief that stronger teacher confidence would lead to richer STEM experiences for pupils. Its impact can be seen in the scale of professional learning delivered, the national reach of the programme and the growing confidence reported by teachers across participating local authorities.

By the end of the programme, RAiSE had created lasting networks, resources and learning that continue to support primary science across Scotland.

34,000

educators received professional learning support through RAiSE

local authorities engaged across Scotland

3,511

professional learning events delivered

80,000

visits to RAiSE online resources since 2020

THE START OF THE RAISE STORY

What if every primary teacher felt confident in science?

RAiSE was built around a simple but powerful idea: when teachers feel confident teaching science, pupils are more likely to experience STEM as exciting, relevant and possible.

For many primary teachers, science can be one of the subjects they feel least confident delivering. RAiSE set out to change that by giving practitioners the time and support to build their own confidence, and carry that confidence back into their classrooms.

That belief shaped this programme from the beginning. By investing in teachers, RAiSE aimed to create better STEM experiences for pupils and help more young people see science as part of their future.

How RAiSE created change

RAiSE worked because it was not delivered at a distance. It placed support inside local authorities, close to the schools and teachers it was designed to help.

Activation

The driving role

At the heart of RAiSE were Primary Science Development Officers (PSDOs). Based within participating local authorities, the PSDOs worked closely with teachers to understand what would make science feel more achievable in their classrooms.

Their role was practical and personal. They helped teachers build confidence over time, shaping support around the realities of each school rather than asking every setting to follow the same route.

Local awareness

Rooted in local context

Every local authority involved in RAiSE started from a different place. Some were building confidence in science teaching. Some were developing stronger links with local industries. Others were thinking about how STEM could support wider priorities for pupils and communities.

RAiSE gave each area room to shape the work around its own context. That local flexibility was one of the reasons the programme could become embedded in different parts of Scotland, rather than feeling like something added on from outside.

National impact

Connected across Scotland

Although RAiSE was shaped locally, it was never isolated.

Primary Science Development Officers were part of a wider national network, supported through Education Scotland and connected by shared learning. Ideas could move between local authorities, successful approaches could be adapted elsewhere and teachers could see that they were part of something bigger than their own school.

That connection helped RAiSE build momentum beyond individual classrooms. It created a stronger foundation for primary science education across Scotland, with learning that continues beyond the programme itself.

Voices from RAiSE

The impact of RAiSE can be seen in the confidence of the teachers who took part and the way local authorities continued to build on the work after their formal funding period ended.

“RAiSE was important in Edinburgh in cementing the position of STEM as a key educational driver. I have witnessed a huge leap in confidence and output from practitioners I worked alongside and seen many of the partnerships develop and grow.”

Juliet Lunniss Former Primary Science Development Officer, City of Edinburgh

“The time was right for RAiSE in Dumfries & Galloway. It provided a vital structure for us to explore the potential of STEM for our youngest learners.”

David Maxwell Strategic Lead, Dumfries & Galloway

“My involvement with RAiSE has increased my personal confidence in STEM teaching and to weave it into our school ethos.”

Alistair Harbison Class Teacher, Angus

A legacy beyond the programme

RAiSE has now concluded, but the work it set in motion continues through the teachers, networks and local approaches developed during the programme.

In many areas, RAiSE gave local authorities the structure and momentum to think differently about primary science. It helped STEM become more visible in schools, created space for teachers to grow in confidence and encouraged partnerships that made learning feel more connected to the world beyond the classroom.

That legacy matters because the aim was never only to deliver activity during a funding period. RAiSE was designed to leave something behind: stronger practice, more confident educators and a clearer place for STEM in primary learning.

What this meant for pupils

The ultimate purpose of RAiSE was to improve the experience of pupils.

By supporting teachers first, the programme helped create more opportunities for children to experience science as practical, creative and relevant to their lives. Pupils were able to see STEM through local industries, community links, real-world challenges and classroom experiences that encouraged curiosity from an early age.

The impact evidence shows that pupils in RAiSE authorities became more interested in STEM subjects, with learners also more likely to consider STEM-related careers compared with those in non-RAiSE authorities.

The RAiSE legacy report

The RAiSE legacy report brings together the learning, impact and recommendations from the programme.

It explores how local authorities embedded primary science, how teacher confidence grew and how the programme’s approach created lasting value beyond the formal funding period.

Download report